sneak peek: shaun moore & todd caldwell

Just last week, Shaun Moore of MADE and Todd Caldwell celebrated ten years in their 1875 Victorian townhouse located in Toronto, Canada. They purchased the house during Shaun’s final term in design school, and it was pretty much a total wreck. The couple loved the building’s original architectural detailing, and they’ve been sure to keep as much of that as possible. But they did opt to demolish the back end of the house, which allowed them to significantly increase the amount of light in the space and to make their own mark on the 130-year-old home. The couple’s style has evolved over the past ten years, transitioning out of a mid-century phase and into their current interest in supporting the works of Canadian artists and designers, which they mix with inherited antiques. They don’t want the house to be too precious, so it’s a continual balancing act between old and new. They’ve done a pretty good job of making that happen! Thanks, Shaun and Todd! — Amy A.

Image above: This corner of the living room is very near the front door. Our entry hall is pretty narrow, so we use this space as a foyer. The upholstery fabric on the chair is by our close friend Andresa Sisson-Drayton. The mirror came from Todd’s grandmother in Eau-Claire Wis. The side table is one of the last pieces I made with my own hands.

Image above: The living room is one of the spaces that sold us on the house. The ceilings are 10′ high, and there’s a great archway that leads into the dining room. The green chair was a lucky junk shop find. The painting is by Toronto artist Gillian Iles. The bookshelf was a final term project I made while studying furniture design at Sheridan College. The carpet is “Cholera” by Bev Hisey from her Dirty Dishes series (based on petri-dish samples). The kraft paper soft seating is by Vancouver’s molo.

The rest of the home tour continues after the jump!

Image above: The “Hybrid Console” is by MADE (myself and Julie Nicholson). It is part of a series that has included stools, benches, lighting and even a DJ booth. The skulls are all found, and the collection includes a squirrel, raccoon, fox, beaver, deer, wolf and pig. The two paintings are by Toronto artist Kris Knight. The block totem is by Canadian artist and author, Douglas Coupland.

Image above: We treat our dining room as a fairly formal space. It is a little dark in the day, but it is amazingly moody at night. Perfect for entertaining. The Eames chairs moved with us from Winnipeg to Toronto in 1998. We bought the set of 4 for $125! The George Nelson light was our first purchase for the house. It was the perfect scale for the dining table. The dining table has seen better days, but it is a great size, and when the leaves are inserted, we have squeezed up to 15 people around it (we love a good dinner party!). The mirror on the back wall is by Alberta-based Loyal Loot Collective. We love those girls! The oil-stick drawing is by Alberta artist Dana Holst.

Image above: The credenza was Todd’s great grandmother’s. It has been messed with a lot over the years, with parts chopped off, legs shortened and multiple coats of paint. The stack of plates lamp by Annie Tung and Brad Turner is amazing! It was a favorite of mine from our most recent exhibition “MADE at Home.” The light pours out from between each dish. The two porcelain “Best Before” creamers/vases are by Jeremy Hatch.

Image above: This is our guest room — our own room, on the third floor, is the last space needing renovation. The quilt is by menswear designer Philip Sparks. It is made of offcuts from one of his collections. It is the most amazing Italian wool. The photos are by Zoe Jarameus — she is someone to watch out for! The bedside light is by Vancouver’s Propellor Design. Boris the dog is almost 13 years old now. He is a camera hound — he loves having his picture taken. To his chagrin, we needed to chase him out of most of the shots.

Image above: This shelving was my final project in design school. Todd and I are book nuts, so I am always trying to consider shelving that can accommodate a variety of book shapes and sizes.

Image above: We’re not so sure how our collection of cigar boxes came to be, but we love the graphics on the older ones. We had a realization one day that we had a huge number of cigar boxes despite the fact that we are far from being cigar lovers. Ours are full of old photos and oddball collections. The doll in the background is by Drue Langlois, a fellow Winnipegger who was once a member of the Royal Art Lodge.

Image above: The kitchen was part of our big renovation. The original part of the house had no foundation and was beyond repair. It was great to be able to have a fresh start. We wound up with a room that we really love.The bench is a favorite spot in the house. It runs both inside and outside the window. It is the best place to have a morning coffee and is guaranteed to collect people at a party. The concrete houses are older works by Marcia Huyer, a Toronto artist.

Image above: I created the knives just for our kitchen cabinet. The kitchen is fairly stark compared to much of the house, but it is also the most social space, so we wanted to add a bit of fun. The Marcel Dzama Sad Ghost Salt & Pepper Shakers were a gift from my business partner, Julie. The teapot is by Jeremy Hatch and was a gift from Jeremy.

Image above: This room is at the front of the second floor, and it gets amazing morning light. It is our all-purpose room: den/office/library/overflow guest room. The carpet is by our friend and colleague, Bev Hisey. The white oak and steel coffee table is my own design; the copper light (the room actually has a pair) is by Toronto designer Derek McLeod. The toss cushions are Phillip Sparks. The drawing above the sofa is a very prized possession by Marcel Dzama. We have both been huge fans of Dzama’s work for a long time.

Image above: The bathroom was a labor of love. We did all the tiling ourselves, which was a huge undertaking. I would be happy to never use a tile saw again. The slot window over the bath looks out into a huge, old, ornamental crabapple tree. The pencil cactus was started from a cutting a few years ago and recently needed to be cut way back. It loves that space. The floors in the kitchen and bathroom have radiant heat. It was a splurge that we couldn’t afford but would definitely do again. Toronto has cold, damp winters, and coming home to warm floors makes it almost bearable.

Image above: Our friend Tamira Sawatzki, an architect and artist at Public Studio, designed the new back of the house (the red part). She was amazing to work with. This summer, we are supposed to be adding a roof deck on the third floor.

In a word: Wow !
I’m so inspired, one of the best Sneak Peeks in years. Such a sense of style yet so relaxed and user friendly (the best kind of design really). Definitely want to retrain in Furniture Design now… thank you so much – the milk crate ‘hybrid console’ is brilliant.

Thanks for all the generous comments! Very flattering.
@Katie- The counters are carerra blanco marble from Marble Trend
@Cindy- The red is Ralph Lauren- ‘Longjohn’
@Sarah- The grey is Benjamin Moore- ‘Escarpment’
All the Best,
Shaun

Wow. I absolutely LOVE this house! The perfect mix of stuff and space, old and new. There is obviously a lot of attention to the design, but it still feels comfortable and livable (something a lot of these “staged” homes lack.) Well done!

Agreed with all! This house has such a warm and inviting sense of style, and what a great spotlight for Canadian artists (some of my favourites too). Very classy and brilliant. I live in Toronto and I think this is a wonderful house to feature. Cheers!

A Wow! viewing experience and having visited the house I can add that the eclectic taste, creative design sense and use of space are all enriched by the warm and welcoming, Todd and Shaun. No bias here just an uncle in awe.

Hello! I can’t believ my eyes. I own 2 of the Chrome dome lamps pictured in the foyer, but mine have white marble bases. But they must be same manufacturer as have same round on/off switch. I inherited them from my father. he purchased the, in the 60s when he built our house, but they have no markings and I have never been able to find any history or provenance on the. If anyone knows the origin or manufacturer of these, any and all information would be hugely appreciated. My email is hnagler@fleamarketrx.com. Thanks, Hilary

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